Police are detering people from vigilante activity, stating that "paedophile hunters" in Nothern Ireland are slowing down police investigations and can even prevent criminal justice outcomes.
It comes as the PSNI's Child Internet Protection Team are they busiest they have ever been since their inception in 2010. In 2023, 330 IIOC related searches were carried out (126% more than 2022), thousands of devices seized, and uncovered tens of thousands of indecent images of children.
Statistics show that child sexual abuse crimes including those online, recorded by the Police Service NI throughout 2023, rose to 3,493. This is an average of 10 a day, and an increase of 210 offences from the previous year.
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In 2023, officers reviewed over 27 million images from seized devices identifying around 200 thousand indecent images of children successfully identifying child victims in 57 cases.
In 2022, a Judge sitting in a Tyrone court condemned the actions of so-called ‘paedophile hunters’ and stated they have never been able to convict a person on their ‘type of evidence’. This leaves potentially serious offenders free to move away without any legal controls on their movements or where they can seek employment disappearing without trace.
Police say the activists are causing people to be wrongly accused in some cases and attacked. Cases have fallen through or possible criminal outcomes reduced due to ‘evidence’ being gathered by these groups outside of the law, undermining the integrity of any subsequent police investigation and bringing human rights into question.
Policing the online world requires specialist skills to ensure an investigation is of sufficient quality to bring a high risk offender to justice. They want vigilante groups to let their specialist teams do the job they have been trained to do.
Detective Chief Superintendent Fisher adds: “The police are the only lawful accountable authority to investigate suspected criminality.
“Not only are the workings of these groups hindering our investigations in this space, they are not in a position to ensure safeguarding issues are addressed.
“We take great care in gathering robust evidence and yes we welcome the public to come forward and report concerns to us, but we are firm in our messaging that only we should take action against potential perpetrators.
“The safety of victims and innocent family members should be at the forefront, as well as gathering the best possible evidence to put predators before the courts.
“We would remind these groups that their methods also fall within the category of criminality – blackmail, assault, false imprisonment – naming but a few potential charges.”
Parents/guardians and wider local communities should report any activity, online or physical towards a child that they find concerning. Similarly if you have concerns or suspicions that an adult you know or live with may be engaging in this type of illegal activity report to Police on 101 or 999 in an emergency.
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